A PACKAGING SYSTEM, IN PARTICULAR INTENDED FOR THE GRAPHICS INDUSTRY

Abstract: A packaging system in particular intended for the graphics industry, with a packing (1) for packaging a medium, such as ink and the like, in an at least substantially airtight manner, which packing is at least partially provided with an air impermeable coating on the inside, and which is at least substantially made of a material suitable for being reused, whereby the system includes means (6) for ejecting said medium from the packing under pressure.

Description: A PACKAGING SYSTEM, IN PARTICULAR INTENDED FOR THE GRAPHICS INDUSTRY The invention relates to a packaging system, in particular intended for the graphics industry, with a packing for packaging a medium, such as ink and the like, in an at least substantially airtight manner. It is noted that the use of the packaging system according to the invention is not restricted to the graphics industry, and that the packing used with said system is therefore suitable for packaging (generally) non-solid mediums, such as glue, ointment, appropriate foodstuffs and the like. In the graphics industry the known packing is in the shape of a tin. This tin is filled with printer's ink by the ink suppliers and subsequently supplied to printers. In the printing offices the tin is opened for use and emptied into an ink duct for printing presses, partially or otherwise, by means of an ink knife. After the tin has been completely emptied, it is discharged as scrap for subsequent processing. A drawback of the known packing in the shape of an ink tin is that the use of this packing constitutes a very heavy burden to the environment. The fact of the matter is that in practice a certain amount of residual ink will always remain behind in an emptied ink tin, as a result of which scrap from emptied ink tins is chemically contaminated. A further drawback is the fact that when the ink tin is emptied in part, the ink present at the surface inside the tin will react with air (oxygen) , so that the ink will dry out locally, resulting in "skinning" of the ink. The dried ink needs to be removed and be discharged as chemical waste before the remaining ink inside the tin can be used. Because the dried ink must be removed 10 - 15% of the entire quantity of ink present inside an ink tin is lost. The cost of processing dried-out ink now amounts to an average of three to four Dutch guilders per kilo, exclusive of transport charges. European patent publication No. 0 524 514 (Schieferdecker GmbH & Co. KG) discloses a packaging system with a tubular packing for the airtight packaging of in particular silicone materials. The tubular packing comprises an outer tube with two glued-together cardboard bands, an inner tube with an external aluminium coating and an internal poly¬ ethylene coating, as well as a metal nozzle and a bottom of plastic material. The bottom can be moved towards the nozzle under the influence of a gun, in order to eject the silicone material from the inner tube under pressure. The aforesaid internal polyethylene coating on the inner tube functions to prevent any contact between the silicone material and the cardboard outer tube. The inner tube and the nozzle are interconnected through a local fusion weld between the polyethylene coating and a plastic coating partially provided on the inside of the nozzle. In order to obtain a packing which can be recycled to a certain extent the outer tube and the inner tube can be separated from each other by moving them relative to each other. This makes it possible to process said tubes separately. A drawback of the packaging system known from the aforesaid European patent publication No. 0 524 514 is that the use of the packing of said system constitutes a burden to the environment. The fact is that in practice it has become apparent that the aluminium inner tube provided with a polyethylene coating is hardly recyclable, if at all, with all the disadvantageous consequences for the environment. A further drawback of this known packaging system is it cannot be used for packaging viscous mediums, in particular ink for the graphics industry. After all, the gun of the packaging system known from European patent publication No. 0 524 514 is entirely incapable of ejecting such mediums from the known packaging under great pressure. But even if this were the case - quod non - then the above-described interconnection between the nozzle and the inner tube would fail under such great pressure, resulting in significant leakage of ink. An additional drawback of the packing of the known packaging system is that it does not have a closing, so that the packing needs to be emptied in one go - with the disadvantageous result that part of the ink will dry out. Viewed from that perspective it will be apparent that the method of closing the known packing with a nail, which is used in practice, is a very provisional and inadequate method. The object of the invention is to obtain a packaging system, in particular intended for the graphics industry, provided with an improved packing, whereby there is virtually no, if any at all, burdening of the environment. In order to accomplish this objective a packaging system according to the invention, with a packing for packaging a medium in an at least substantially airtight manner, and with means for ejecting said medium from the packing under pressure, which packing is provided with a nozzle and with a bottom, which can be moved towards said nozzle under the influence of said means, and which packing is at least partially provided with an air impermeable coating on the inside, is characterized in that said packing is at least substantially made of a cellulose-containing material, such as paper/cardboard, that said packing includes an interior edge at its end directed towards said nozzle, against which said nozzle abuts, and that said means are at least substantially comprised of a compressed air device. Preferably a material with a base of cellulose is selected for the air (oxygen) impermeable layer, which material is also called "glassine paper" (Dutch: "perga ijn") in the industry. It is noted that "glassine paper" is also defined as "A supercalendered, smooth, dense, transparent or semi- transparent paper munufactured primarily from chemical wood pulps, which have been beaten and refined to secure a high degree of hydration of the stock. Thus, glassine paper is really a supercalendered greaseproof paper. It is grease resistant, and has a high degree of resistance to the passage of air and many essential-oil vapors used in, for example, food flavoring. When waxed, lacquered, or laminated, glassine paper is highly resistant to the transmission of water vapor. Made in white and various colors. Opaque glassines are produced by the addition of fillers. Basis weight range from 12 to 90 lb. (24x36-500)." Besides moisture (4 - 6%) and auxiliary materials (< 1%) "glassine paper" only contains cellulose fibres with a base of bleached and unbleached sulphite or sulphate woodpulp cellulose. The layer of "glassine paper" serves to prevent ink present in the packing from attacking the cardboard/paper, and ambient air (oxygen) from reacting with the ink inside the packing. The packing, preferably of circular cross-section, can be processed as ordinary paper waste after having been emptied, and be reused by for example the cardboard industry. The compressed air device ensures that ink is squirted from the packing under high pressure, so that no residual ink will remain behind inside the packing after emptying. Preferably the compressed air device is a device according to US-P-4,570,832. The contents of said patent specification are explicitly considered to be incorporated herein. With regard to the paper/cardboard packing ("tube") as a whole, test carried out on the "glassine paper" and the paper/cardboard of the tube as such have produced the following results: basic paper glassine paper paper/cardboard tube - Mass g/m 70 190 800 - Air permeability 5 85 5 ml/min (Bendtsen) - Grease-tightness Class I Class V Class I Din 53,116 (Palm kernel oil) Grease-tightness: (Explanation of the classes) I high II satisfactory III tolerable IV poor V none Since the packing includes an interior edge, against which the nozzle abuts, it is effected that the spray nozzle is not forced from the "actual" packing when the ink is squirted from the packing under the influence of the compressed air device. One embodiment of a packaging system according to the invention is characterized in that the circumferential edge of said nozzle hooks into the interior edge. This prevents leakage of ink along the circumferential edge of the nozzle. Another embodiment of a packaging system according to the invention is characterized in that said interior edge is a beaded edge. In this manner a very strong edge is provided. Another embodiment of a packaging system according to the invention is characterized in that said nozzle and said bottom have substantially corresponding shapes, whereby the bottom may reach up to the inside of the spout part of the nozzle. The bottom of the packing may be moved in the direction of the nozzle by the compressed air device, thus squirting the ink from the packing. The nozzle and the bottom have corresponding shapes, so that they "fit into each other", as it were, when the compressed air device has moved the bottom to an utmost position in the direction of the nozzle. The "dead volume" of the unit is nil or at least very small, therefore, and consequently the packing will not contain any residual ink after having been emptied. In principle the nozzle and the bottom may be made of any material, it is preferred to use a plastic material, however, which may be readily adapted for reuse. Another embodiment of a packaging system according to the invention is characterized in that said nozzle comprises a shut-off valve, which is movable between an open and a closed position. The advantage of this is that the packing does not have to be emptied in one go. When the packing is emptied in part this will by no means affect the quality of the ink that remains behind. The invention also relates to a packing obviously suitable for being used in the packaging system according to the invention. The invention will be explained in more detail hereafter with reference to the accompanying Figures, wherein: - Figure 1 diagrammatically shows a partial side view (a) of a tubular packing according to the invention, a plan view (b) , as well as a longitudinal section (c) thereof; - Figure 2 shows detail views (a) of the longitudinal section (c) of Figure 1. Figure 1 shows a tubular packing 1 of a cellulose- containing material, such as paper/cardboard. The tube 1 includes a shut-off valve 2, which is provided with ribs 3 at its bottom side, so that said shut-off valve 2 can be readily opened and closed, as will be explained in more detail with reference to Figure 2. Furthermore a nozzle 4 is provided, which abuts against a beaded edge 5 of the tube 1 , so that it will not be forced out of the tube 1 when ink is squirted from the tube 1 under the influence of pressure means. The beaded edge 5 prevents leakage of ink at that location. The tube l is produced in the following manner. A number (5 or 6 for example) of paper/cardboard bands are coiled up on a so-called spiral winding machine. This machine is arranged such that eventually all bands of paper/cardboard meet, after passing a few rollers, on a metal roller (a so- called winding mandrel) , whereby a film of adhesive is applied to the individual bands. The adhesive contained in said film is an environment-friendly material, for that matter, which is suitable for bonding cardboard/paper. The individual paper/cardboard bands are wound on the winding mandrel in overlapping relationship, so as to produce a tube l . At the end of the winding machine the tube 1 . is cut off to a predetermined size. The rough cardboard tube l is now ready for further processing. A beading machine provides the beaded edge 5. The tube 1 is placed on a pre¬ formed plate in "fresh" condition, that is, still wet with the adhesive coating, after which the beading machine presses the tube 1 firmly into the pre-formed plate, in such a manner that the beaded edge 5 is produced. The shape of this beaded edge is always the same, because one and the same pre-formed plate is used. Possibly the beading machine slightly flares out the bottom side of the tube l , so that fitting the bottom of the tube 1 at a later stage will not be difficult. On the inside the tube 1 is provided with an air impermeable layer, preferably made of "glassine paper" (Dutch: "pergamijn") . "Glassine paper" is a grease-proof paper with a base of cellulose, which is characterized in that its grease-tightness is high and its air permeability is low. The "glassine paper" is the first band which is wound on the aforesaid winding machine for that matter, after which the cardboard/paper bands are successively provided thereon. Figure 2 shows a situation wherein (a) the bottom 6 of the tube JL is moved in the direction of the nozzle 4 under the influence of the pressure means, squirting out the ink present inside the tube 1 thereby. The bottom 6 and the nozzle 4 are have corresponding shapes, so that a dead volume (b) is virtually non-existent, if not altogether. Consequently, after the tube 1 has been completely emptied no residual ink will remain behind inside said tube 1. The pressure means are preferably comprised of a compressed air device in accordance with US-P-4,570,832. In the embodiment according to Figure 2 the shut-off valve 2 and the nozzle 4 are undetachably connected together, in such a manner that the shut-off valve 2 can be brought to an open (a) and a closed (b) position. The shut-off valve 2 and the nozzle 4 are provided with mating threads 7 for that purpose. In the open position (a) ink can leave the tube 1 in the direction indicated by the arrow 8. The nozzle 4 in Figure 2 actually consists of two parts: the "actual" nozzle 4 and a cap 9, which are interconnected via mating threads 10. The bottom 6, which functions as a "plunger", is provided with a weakened portion 11, so that the bottom 6 and the cap 9 abut against each other. The bottom 6, the nozzle 4 and the shut-off valve 2 are preferably made of a plastic material, for example polyethylene. An injection moulding machine is filled with polyethylene granules having a grain size of about 0.4 mm, after which said grains are melted into a liquid syrup and injected into a squirting device under high pressure. The liquid syrup is then squirted into an injection moulding die. Finally the bottom 6, the nozzle 4 and the shut-off valve 2 are formed. The nozzle 4 is pressed into the tube 1 by means of a pressing machine, until it abuts against the beaded edge 5 of the tube 1. Then the tube 1 may be filled with ink, after which the bottom 6 may be fitted into the tube 1. A specially developed machine thereby generates a vacuum, so that no air (oxygen) will be present between the bottom 6 and the ink, in order to prevent the ink from reacting with the air.

Claims: CLAIMS 1. A packaging system with a packing (1) for packaging a medium in an at least substantially airtight manner, and with means for ejecting said medium from the packing ( 1) under pressure, which packing ( 1) is provided with a nozzle (4) and with a bottom (6) , which can be moved towards said nozzle (4) under the influence of said means, and which packing (JL) is at least partially provided with an air impermeable coating on the inside, characterized in that said packing ( 1) is at least substantially made of a cellulose-containing material, such as paper/cardboard, that said packing (JL) includes an interior edge (5) at its end directed towards said nozzle, against which said nozzle (4) abuts, and that said means are at least substantially comprised of a compressed air device. 2. A packaging system according to claim 1, characterized in that the circumferential edge of said nozzle (4) hooks into said interior edge (5) . 3. A packaging system according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that said interior edge (5) is a beaded edge. 4. A packaging system according to any one of the preceding claims 1 - 3, characterized in that said nozzle (4) and said bottom (6) are substantially correspondingly shaped, whereby the bottom (6) may reach up to the inside of the spout part of the nozzle (4) . 5. A packaging system according to any one of the preceding claims 1 - 4, characterized in that said nozzle (4) includes a shut-off valve (2) , which is movable between an open and a closed position. A packing (JL) suitable for being used in a packaging system according to any one of the preceding claims 1 - 5.

Inventors: DE RUITER THEODORUS JOHANNES M, DE RUITER, THEODORUS, JOHANNES, MARIA
Applicants: RUITER PACKAGING BV DE, RUITER THEODORUS JOHANNES MARI, DE RUITER PACKAGING B.V., DE RUITER, THEODORUS, JOHANNES, MARIA
Application year: 1994
Main classification: B65D83
IPC codes: B65D25, B65D35, B65D83